"Unless you have big partnerships, it is difficult for you to score big" - Sunil Gavaskar lambasts MI's top order batting
Former Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar believes the Mumbai Indians (MI) have struggled since the last edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to a lack of batting partnerships.
Having finished bottom of the table last season with just four wins from 14 matches, MI have had a torrid time thus far this season. The five-time IPL champions have lost their opening two games convincingly against the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Chennai Super Kings.
With their bowling already depleted due to the absence of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah due to injury, MI have been reliant on their top-order batting to win matches.
Speaking to Star Sports, Gavaskar lamented that MI should have built their innings through solid partnerships between openers Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan but have failed. The batting legend said:
“MI’s biggest problem since last season till date has been the lack of partnerships. Unless you have big partnerships, it is difficult for you to score big. MI has been seen struggling continuously in this regard. MI should have built their innings on short but useful partnerships between Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan, but they failed.”
Mumbai Indians have lost half their side with less than 100 on the board in both matches this season, with their opening partnership not crossing 40 on either occasion. Their star-studded Indian trio of Sharma, Kishan, and Suryakumar Yadav have all struggled this season.
Skipper Sharma is yet to score a half-century since the 2021 edition of the IPL. His poor form with Yadav's diminishing returns lately has meant that the batting has failed to put up competitive totals.
MI take on the other winless side in the competition, Delhi Capitals, in Delhi on Tuesday, April 11.
"Whenever Sachin talks, you listen to him" - MI all-rounder Cameron Green on his conversation with Sachin Tendulkar
Mumbai Indians all-rounder Cameron Green spoke about the valuable inputs he received from Little Master Sachin Tendulkar ahead of the crucial encounter against the Delhi Capitals on Tuesday, April 11.
Green was picked up by the Mumbai Indians for whopping ₹ 17.50 crores at the mini-auction late last year. The tall Western Australian has had an impressive start to his international career but hasn't hit the ground running thus far in the IPL.
In the two games this year, Green has scored just 17 runs at a strike rate of 113 and has picked up just one wicket at an economy of 10 runs per over.
Ahead of the clash against the Delhi Capitals, the 23-year-old spoke of his conversation with Tendulkar. He said:
"Whenever Sachin talks, you listen to him. He was basically talking about the fact that I was playing with a closed-face in red-ball cricket, but in white-ball cricket, opening the face of the bat helps you to access balls on the off side. That's the conversation I had with him."
Cameron Green's all-around abilities will play a vital role in the franchise's performance this season, with Mumbai Indians hoping to avoid a repeat of last season, where they lost their first eight games.